The latest unemployment rates for North Carolina have been released by the Department of Commerce, giving a different look to the state’s economy.
WHQR’s Jessica Ferrer reports that the unemployment rate for January was 10.2 percent, much higher than the national average of 8.3 percent.
Despite the state’s rate of unemployment being more than 10 percent, this is a slight improvement when compared to December’s rate of 10.4 percent. Previously, the Commerce Department said the unemployment rates for last year were around 9 percent, but these figures have been re-calculated. The numbers are annually revised by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to include things like population controls, seasonal factors, and unemployment insurance claims. This is the first time the new population controls take into account results from the 2010 census. Even though the new numbers are high, North Carolina added 17,000 nonfarm jobs in January. Unemployment figures for individual counties will be released later this month.